Norman withdraws; Crosswater's unique feature

Updated: August 20, 2009, 8:14 PM ET
Associated Press

SUNRIVER, Ore. -- Greg Norman withdrew from the Jeld-Wen Tradition just before his scheduled tee time on Thursday because of back spasms.

The Tradition is the fourth of five majors on the Champions Tour. It would have been Norman's first appearance in the event and sixth start on the tour this year.

Norman plays a limited schedule on the tour because his time is dominated by his businesses. He said he fit the Tradition in this year because he was in British Columbia last week to survey a golf course he is developing.

Even in sporadic play this year he has fared well. In the Senior British Open he finished tied for sixth. At The U.S. Senior Open he tied for fourth.

The Hall of Famer from Australia, who joined the tour for senior golfers in 2005, won 20 times on the PGA Tour. Known as the Shark, Norman was the world's top-ranked golfer for 331 weeks during the 1990s.

Norman's back was sore Wednesday night, tour officials said, before the spasms on Thursday morning.

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RESTING IN PEACE: Among the unique features of Crosswater Golf Club is a small cemetery nestled along the fairway of the 11th hole.

Surrounded by a white picket fence, a handful of marked graves date to the 1800s. The loved ones buried are members and associates of the Allen family, which owned a homestead on the scenic high desert property.

One Allen, Joel R., was born on March 6, 1830, and died on Nov. 10, 1888.

It is said that Allen arrived in Oregon by covered wagon in 1857 and settled on 160 acres in what is now Sunriver.

His family raised cattle on the property, which they owned until 1942. Their ranch home, destroyed in the 40s, was on what is now the No. 8 hole.

When Bob Cupp designed the Crosswater course in 1995, he did not disturb the cemetery.

Today, historic photographs of the homestead line the walls of Crosswater's clubhouse. One shows a smiling young woman displaying fish she apparently caught in the Deschutes River, which winds through the property.

Another shows sheep being herded across a bridge spanning the river.

Club officials say that although Crosswater is a private golf club, members of the Allen family may visit at any time.

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ACE: John Cook hit a hole-in-one on the 165-yard No. 13 hole at Crosswater during the Tradition's opening round. He used an 8-iron.

It was Cook's first ace on the Champions Tour, which he joined in 2007.


Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press

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